American History Timeline 1700-1800

The First Yale College House American History

1701 – The foundations of Yale University are laid

In 1701, the Colony of Saybrook passed an act to establish a Collegiate School. Situated in modern-day Connecticutt, this school eventually evolved to become one of the leading university of the world today, namely Yale University.

1702 – Queen Anne’s War begins

In 1700, the king of Spain Charles II died. He had no heirs, so there was a dispute over who should succeed him as king. This eventually led to a war in which the major European powers participated at one side or the other. Britain fought against France and Spain. The war spread to North America as well in 1702 where British and French fought against each other.

1702 – New Jersey colonies are established

In 1702, the British Queen Anne established the royal colony of New Jersey by combining the American provinces of East Jersey and West Jersey.

1713 – Queen Anne’s War ends

The British won the Queen Anne’s War and concluded it with a treaty in 1713. They also gained control of many new areas in North America including Acadia, Newfoundland, Hudson Bay and St. Kitts island.

1715 – The Yamasee War takes place

By 1715, the British had established many colonies in North America. They also took over many of the lands of the Native Americans who resented them.

This and many other factors led to the start of the Yamasee War. This war was fought between British colonists of South Carolina at one side and a number of Native American tribes at the other side led by the Yamasee tribe. The Native Americans destroyed a number of settlements and killed a large number of colonists.

Yamasee War American American History Timeline

1717 – South Carolina wins the Yamasee War

At the start of the war, the British colonists in South Carolina suffered many setbacks. They lost many lives as well as settlements. But slowly, they turned the war against the Yamasee tribe. By 1717, the Yamasee were effectively defeated and the South Carolina colonists were victorious, bringing the war to an end.

1722 – Dummer’s War begins

The Queen Anne’s War ended in 1713 with British victory. As part of the treaty, the French gave up several areas to the British. Some of these areas were originally occupied by Native American tribes, so they didn’t like the terms of the treaty.

Also, the British colonists started settling on the land belonging to these tribes which further angered them. This eventually led to the start of a new war between British colonists and Native American tribes. This was known as the Dummer’s War.

1725 – Battle of Pequawket takes place

The Battle of Pequawket took place as a part of the Dummer’s War. In this battle, a small army of British colonists was ambushed by a group of Pequawket warriors.

The battle took place in Maine. The British colonists suffered significant losses during this battle as 20 of the 46 soldiers died. On the other side, the Pequawkey tribe also suffered many losses including their leader, Chief Paugus.

1729 – North and South Carolina become royal colonies

The North Carolina and South Carolina was originally established by independent British colonists. This meant that the government of the colonies was done by these independent colonists. But people didn’t like their government and by 1729, the British king purchased the colonies from the colonists. These colonies now became a possession of the crown and directly came under the British rule.

1750 – Britain passes Iron Act

The British parliament passed the Iron Act in 1750. This act eliminated the taxes paid by Britain on the iron imported from its American colonies. It also said that the American colonies should not use iron for production and export it in raw form to Britain.

The American colonies didn’t like the act because it stopped them from established production facilities on their own land. It also reduced their profits from exporting iron. The Iron Act was one of the main causes that angered the Americans and led to the American Revolution.

In 1754, the French and Indian War began. This war was fought between British colonies in North America and the French colonies as well as their allies.

1754 – French and Indian War begins

In 1754, the French and Indian War began. This war was fought between British colonies in North America and the French colonies as well as their allies.

At the same time, the Seven Years’ War was being fought in Europe. The French and Indian War began is considered a smaller part of the Seven Years’ War. George Washington was a young man of 22 at the time and he participated in this war as part of the British militia from Virginia.

The war was mainly fought for the control of the Ohio River Valley. The French initially won many victories. Then in 1757, more soldiers arrived from Britain and the British colonists were able to defeat the French and their Indian allies. As a result, they gained control of the Ohio River Valley.

1763 – Pontiac’s War begins

The Native American tribes in the Ohio River Valley didn’t appreciate British victory in the French and Indian War. They didn’t like the fact that the British colonists and soldiers stayed on in the Valley. This eventually led to a new war by a Native American chief named Pontiac.

The war began in 1763 and continued until 1763. During this time, the Native American warriors killed a large number of British soldiers and white settlers. The British also killed a large number of Native Americans. In the end, both sides agreed to resolve the matter through negotiations and the Native Americans left the lands claimed by the British.

1763 – King George II issues the Royal Proclamation of 1763

After the French and Indian War had ended, the King George II of Britain issued a Royal Proclamation. This proclamation was aimed at protecting the rights of the Native Americans.

It said that the colonists should not settle on the lands west of the Appalachian Mountains. The colonists didn’t like this. Some of them had been give land grants in that area, and this mean’t the loss of these grants. This angered the colonists and became one of the reasons why colonists eventually rebelled against the British rule.

1764 – British Parliament passes the Sugar Act

In 1764, the British Parliament passed the Sugar Act. Back in 1733, the parliament had passed the Molasses Act. This act imposed new taxes on molasses but the act was never strictly enforced.

In the Sugar Act, the parliament reduced the taxes of the Molasses Act but said that the tax will now be strictly enforced. This took place at a time when the economic conditions of North American colonies were not good. So the colonists were angry about this Act.

1765 – British Parliament passes the Stamp Act

By 1765, a large number of British soldiers were stationed in North American colonies. These soldiers required food, housing, and a large amount of money for their wages.

The British parliament wanted to collect this money from the colonists. So it imposed a new tax through the Stamp Act. The Act said that if anyone wanted to print any material in North American colonies, they should do so on the embossed papers imported from London.

These papers were expensive, so colonists had to pay more money. This angered them and they started protesting against the parliament. Stamp sellers and distributors on North America were threatened by the colonists. This Act became one of the main causes of the American Revolution.

1767 – Townshend Acts lead to riots and protests

As part of its efforts to impose taxes and raise more money from the colonies, the British government imposed a number of new taxes in 1767. These were collectively known as the Townshend Acts.

Through these acts, the government imposed new duties on glass, tea, lead, paper and other items imported to the American colonies. This angered the colonists and American merchants started boycotting British goods. The greatest unrest took place in Boston which was one of the main economic centers at the time.

1770 – Boston Massacre takes place

In 1768, British government ordered that British soldiers should be stationed in Boston. This was because most of the protests against new taxes imposed by the British government took place in Boston.

In 1770, a group of protestors gathered around 8 British soldiers. They hurled abuse at the soldiers and threatened them with clubs and stones. The soldiers opened fire and killed three people, with another two later dying of wounds. This became known as the incident of Boston Massacre.

1773 – British Parliament passes the Tea Act

In 1773, the British Parliament passed the Tea Act. This Act didn’t impose any new taxes but it granted complete monopoly over the tea trade in the Americas to the British East India Company.

At the time, more than 80% of the tea consumed in American colonies was smuggled, to avoid the high amount of import duties. The Tea Act aimed to end this and help out the East India Company at the same time which was in debt. The Act was very unpopular with the colonists and lead to the incident of the Boston Tea Party.

1773 – Boston Tea Party takes place

The Boston Tea Party was a protest launched by an organization known as Sons of Liberty. This organization was formed by the thirteen American colonies to protest against the economic policies of Britain towards the colonies.

After the British Parliament passed the Tea Act in 1773, the Sons of Liberty strongly protested against the Act. As part of their protests, they boarded British ships carrying tea in December 1773 and destroyed the shipment by throwing the tea chests into the harbor. This became known as the Boston Tea Party.

1774 – Intolerable Acts anger the colonists

The Boston Tea Party greatly angered the British Parliament. To punish Boston and the colony of Massachusetts, the parliament passed a number of new Acts. These were later known as Intolerable Acts.

These Acts closed the port of Boston to all economic activity, took away the political rights of Massachusetts, and imposed other punitive measures. This was seen as coercion by the colonists and became a major reason for the American Revolution.

1774 – First Continental Congress convenes

In 1774, the First Continental Congress took place. This was a meeting of the delegates from the Thirteen Colonies. The meeting was convened to discuss the Intolerable Acts passed by the British Parliament.

It agreed on a set of rights and grievances which were shared with the King George III through a petition. The Congress also discussed the establishment of local militias for the colonies. It was decided that if the King didn’t respond to their petition, a second Continental Congress would take place the next year.

Battle of Lexington 1775

1775 – Battles of Lexington and Concord are fought

The Battles of Lexington and Concord were the first armed engagement between British forces and the American revolutionaries. In 1774, British government had dissolved the Massachusetts colonial government but the colonial government continued to operate on a provisional basis. It also overlooked the creation and training of a militia force.

In April 1775, British forces were stationed mainly in Boston. A portion of these forces marched to Lexington, Concord and other towns with the intention of destroying militia supplies.

They were confronted by the militia men and the first shots of the American Revolution were fired. The militia men kept attacking the British force during its search for supplies and then during its march back to Boston. Then the militia army laid siege to Boston.

1775 – Battle of Bunker Hill results in a costly British victory

The Battle of Bunker Hill took place as part of the Siege of Boston during the American Revolutionary War. The British decided to occupy the hills surrounding the city of Boston.

The colonial forces learned about this plan and occupied the Breed’s Hill with the intent of opposing the British advance. When the British tried to occupy the hill, the colonial forces took them by surprise and attacked them.

In the end, British troops were able to gain control of the hill but they had to suffer severe losses. In all, the British suffered around 1,000 casualties while the colonial forces suffered about 450 casualties.

1775 – Second Continental Congress convenes

The Second Continental Congress took place in 1775. In this congress, the delegates from 13 colonies discussed the ongoing American Revolution. The Congress effectively became the de facto government of the colonies at war. It determined the strategy of the war as well as the issue of raising and paying armies, and establishing treaties with others on behalf of the colonies.

1776 – Declaration of Independence is adopted by the Second Continental Congress

The Declaration of Independence was a very important declaration adopted by the Second Continental Congress in 1776. This declaration said that the 13 American colonies were no longer under British rule and considered themselves as independent entities.

1777 – Winter at Valley Forge shape up the Continental Army

In 1777, General George Washington and the Continental Army camped at Valley Forge during the winters. They didn’t have enough provisions and supplies. Nearly 2500 men died due to the poor conditions.

But the time at Valley Forge gave the Continental Army to train well and become better as an army overall. When the army emerged from Valley Forge after the winters, it was ready to fight the British more effectively.

1777 – Battles of Saratoga lead to major American victory

In 1777, two battles were fought between the American and British forces in Saratoga County, New York. These were known as the First Battle of Saratoga and the Second Battle of Saratoga. In the first battle, British were victorious but they couldn’t break through American lines to achieve their actual objective.

In the second battle, the American army was decisively victorious. The whole British army was surrounded and forced to surrender. This was an important event of the Revolutionary War because the British defeat convinced France to form an alliance with America.

1781 – Siege of Yorktown results in decisive British surrender

During 1781, a number of battles were fought between American and British forces in Virginia. In many of these battles, French troops fought alongside American armies.

Most of these engagements resulted in British defeats, and the British troops were eventually forced to take refuge in Yorktown. They had hoped that they would receive reinforcements or help from the sea. But the joint American and French forces laid a land and sea siege of Yorktown.

Ultimately, the British army was forced to surrender and nearly 7500 British troops were captured. This effectively marked the end of the Revolutionary War as the Surrender at Yorktown became the last major engagement of the War.

Siege of Yorktown 1862 Map

1783 – Treaty of Paris ends the American War of Independence

With the Surrender at Yorktown, the British realized that they could no longer win the war. So they decided to sue for peace. These efforts led to the Treaty of Paris signed in 1783.

According to this treaty, Great Britain officially accepted its defeat and recognized the independence of the United States of America. The treaty also stated that the western boundary of the USA was the Mississippi River, although the newly born nation soon expanded beyond this boundary.

1787 – Constitution of the United States is composed at the Constitutional Convention

The Constitutional Convention took place from May to September, 1787. This was an event where delegates from all the Thirteen Colonies participated. They came together to discuss what sort of government they should create now that they were free from the British rule. They also discussed how the states will exist under this government and how independent will be the states.

Another important matter they discussed was the powers of the President of United States. George Washington, who had led United States to victory in the Revolutionary War, presided over this convention.

1787 – Publication of Federalist Papers begins

Federalist Papers were essays and articles which explained the new Constitution of the United States. These were written in order to gain the support of the people and the states in favor of the new constitution. The main authors of these papers were Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Jay, all three among the Founding Fathers of USA.

In total, they published 85 articles and essays between October 1787 and April 1788. These papers became very important in understanding the constitution of USA.

1791 – Bill of Rights

Some of the states didn’t like the new constitution. They wanted to change it and agreed to vote in its favor only if the constitution would be amended soon after.

These amendments took place in 1791. They were collectively known as the Bill of Rights and comprised of a total of 10 amendments. The amendments were approved in 1789 by the Congress. But it needed to be approved by at least 10 states in order to become a part of the U.S. Constitution.

In 1791, Virginia became the 10th state to ratify the amendments which then became a part of the constitution. These amendments were mainly concerned with basic rights of U.S. citizens such as the right to assembly, freedom of religion, freedom of speech and legal rights.

1794 – Whiskey Rebellion

After the American Revolution, nearly all the states in USA had a large debt. To repay this debt, the federal government decided to impose a whiskey tax. This tax was imposed on the producers of whiskey. It adversely affected the small producers in Virginia and Pennsylvania who started protesting against the tax.

Soon after the tax was imposed, protests spread all over Pennsylvania where people refused to pay the tax and intimidated the officials who came to collect it. The protests were so widespread that President George Washington had to send in a militia. In the end, the tax was repealed.

1800 – The White House

The construction of the White House began in 1790s. It was until 1800 that an American President came to live in it for the first time. Although it was still unfinished at the time, President John Adams and his wife Abigail Adams took up residence in the White House. Thus began the long tradition of White House becoming the seat of U.S. presidents.